Actor Heo Sung-tae honestly opened up about the panic disorder he experienced after the success of Netflix's Squid Game.
On the 9th, a scene was revealed on the MBC entertainment program How Do You Play? where Yoo Jae-suk and Lee Yi-kyung delivered an invitation to Heo Sung-tae for the "Insa-mo (a gathering of unpopular people)."
After receiving the invitation, Heo Sung-tae calmly admitted, "I also have no popularity." He followed this by saying, "I heard there's a fan cafe," and added, "There are 30 people. I have no popularity. I see myself objectively," which drew laughter.
Previously, Heo Sung-tae rose to stardom through the Netflix series Squid Game, garnering global popularity and attention. He noted that he frequently checks his social media follower count, saying, "Because of Squid Game, the follower count went up to 2.4 million. I received so many notifications that my phone shut down." He mentioned, "But since then, about a thousand have unfollowed each day until it dropped to 1.2 million. Recently, thanks to Good Boy, it's gradually risen back up to 1.39 million."
However, behind the explosive attention, there was also a backlash. Heo Sung-tae said, "This is the first time I'm talking about this. I had a panic disorder. I even paused filming. At that time, I was shooting a historical drama."
He confessed, "When it happened overnight like that, all the staff seemed like they were watching me. 'Let's see how well he acts.' It felt like they were staring at me. My entire body was really trembling. So, I stopped all filming. I had never experienced anything like it before. I ended up seeking help from a neurologist and counseling," revealing that he faced panic disorder after Squid Game.
In response, Lee Yi-kyung remarked, "That's why you didn't contact anyone around that time. I didn't know you were in pain. There were a lot of rumors about you back then. They said, 'Since Squid Game did well, he has changed.'" Heo Sung-tae added, "I wonder about these comments. Changed? I haven't done anything."
[Photo] OSEN DB, broadcast screen capture
[OSEN]